I have received more than a few comments to the effect that somehow Libertarian thought and Christian beliefs are in conflict. This is, thankfully, both untrue and easy to demonstrate as untrue.
The first thing that must be understood is the limits that Libertarian thought places on itself. Libertarian thought only addresses the interactions of two living, corporeal people. Libertarian thought is a minimalist morality in that it defines only the minimal requirements, and leaves up to the individual the right to take upon themselves higher codes of behavior.
Libertarian morality is the absence of force or fraud in human relationships.
To help you understand better, we Christians must look at the Libertarian philosophy through the lens of the Holy Scriptures. I draw your attention to ten commandments:
1: “You shall have no other gods before Me”
This is between man and God, not addressed by the Libertarian philosophy.
2: “You shall not make for yourself a carved image–any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.”
Again, this is between creator and creation, not between men.
3: “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.”
Same here
4: “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.”
More of the same.
5: “Honor your father and your mother.”
The Libertarian philosophy is not in conflict here. One could not be honorable to his parents by wielding either force or fraud being used against his parents.
6: “You shall not murder.”
No conflict here.
7: “You shall not commit adultery.”
Adultery is, ultimately, a lie, and thus fraud. No conflict here.
8: “You shall not steal.”
No conflict here.
9: “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.”
No conflict here.
10: “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.”
No conflict here. This addresses what is in your heart, and the Libertarian philosophy does not speak to those issues, only to issues between people, not inside an individual.
Of course, we no longer live in the age of law, but in the age of Grace. Thus our highest arbiter must be the Lord Jesus Christ. Even He gives us no commandment with which the Libertarian philosophy is in conflict. This is precisely because the philosophy stops at actions, physical or spoken, between people.
Libertarians hold that you cannot hit someone else, nor can you lie to them for personal gain. These things are not counter to Christian values, nor could practicing them lead to conflict for the Christian, for Libertarianism demands respect of others, and control of your own behavior.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
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I've been a Christian for a long time and a libertarian for about ten years. It's been a learning experience which is ongoing. There is an important difference between the libertarian philosophy and the teachings of Christ which must be understood in order to put them in perspective relative to one another.
ReplyDeleteLibertarianism is a worldly philosophy based on the recognition of natural rights and equality of justice. It addresses negative actions, the 'Thou shalt nots' which human beings commit against one another. Libertarianism can be expressed inwardly as how each of us should act in regard to the negative rights of others and outwardly as how others should act in regard to the negative rights of all others. It is both personal and impersonal. Libertarianism, however does not address the Christian's personal responsibilities such as love, (charity), compassion, or forgiveness.
The teachings of Christ are personal. They pertain to each individual Christian and to his relationship to others both positively and negatively. It's the 'Thou shalt nots' and the 'Thou shalts.'
Libertarianism is a respect for the rules by which those of us living on this world, saved, unsaved, Christian, atheist,... should all abide. Christianity is about our personal relationship with Christ and our being an image of Him, (to the best of our human ability), for the world to see that they might come to know Him.
If this seems like an unfair arrangement which gives Christians a bad field position, then we should remember that those of this world have the home field advantage. We are just visitors.
From the libertarian perspective, when someone violates my negative rights, (life, liberty, property),I deserve and have the right to restitution. However, as a Christian I must keep in mind that what I deserve is nothing, that everything I have is the product of God's infinite grace and that to follow Christ means to give all that I have to him, including my life, my liberty and my property. It's a tough row to hoe, and to be honest, it's not in me to practice all that I preach. I'm far from perfect, but just because the job is not humanly attainable does not mean I should quit.
I'm a libertarian. I won't tread on you.
I'm a Christian. If you tread on me, I'll (try to), forgive you.
Peace, Bryan Morton
Nice post, I agree that there is no conflict between libertarian thinking and the 10 commandments simply as well. In fact, the resemblance of the commandments about human relationships to libertarian thinking is striking - at least to me. I find it very interesting, though, that the problem that non-libertarian Christians have so often is not disagreeing with the above, but disagreeing that any government is thusly obligated to follow the same sort of morality. In other words, the State is above basic morality! It is a tacit assumption, completely unproven, and wickedly deceptive - don't you think?
ReplyDeleteActually I believe that libertarian thought can find it's origins in the bible. check out http://lpcitrus.blogspot.com/2009/04/americas-not-christian-nation-and-im.html for a little more detail similar to above
ReplyDelete